Budgie Trafficking – Sad truth behind of Awful Pet Trade!

Budgie trafficking or any pet trade is an awful business, not looking for benefits of health and happiness of pets, but only for making money out of these little poor souls.

Gone are the days when cats and dogs were the only favored pet across the globe. If not above them, budgies tend to be at par with them in demand as pets today. Many avian lovers want all that chirping and cuteness in their pet companion. And as history shows, every industry has made way for the parallel dark industry, the budgie trade got the taint too.

Budgie trafficking is the sad truth of the budgie industry. Contrary to the denials, the ugly trafficking is for real. And this can be proven with simple logic: with an increase in demand, the price increases; and not everyone can afford premium desires; hence, the unfulfilled demands for these little birds are met the wrong way. And, knowingly or unknowingly, many of us play a major role in promoting it. Let’s know the facts right from the beginning: the real syndicate busting reports.

Budgie Trafficking Reports

Budgies are the most famed and loved pets around the world. They are the ultimate talking bird, a source of happiness, and a loyal company. And for many, they are a great ‘showpiece’ for their households. This cocktail of humane and inhumane reasons has given birth to cartels trafficking both original budgies and English budgies to various parts of the world.

Though there are many reports on the uncensored internet about this unscrupulous practice, the mainstream reporting hardly highlights it:

A racket was busted in June 2019 at Bangladesh and India border where the Border Security Forces seized around 70 English Budgies being smuggled into India to cater to the huge demand. There have been other reports too in the past where a few smuggling rackets were busted at the India-Nepal border trying to smuggle Australian Budgies into the country.

In July 2020, another gang trying to illegally sneak in the budgies, and a few other exotic birds were caught by the local authorities in the West Bengal state of India. They were being transported after being stuffed inside the seats of a vehicle.

The Department of Sustainability and Environment of Australia has been reported to bust such gangs regularly that try to sneak out the wild-caught budgies out of the country. They haven’t only seized the little budgie chicks but their eggs too. Eggs are thought to be easier to smuggle out of the country. The Department has linked the demand for illegal budgies with Singapore, Philippines, and South Africa where budgie breeding is uncommon. They have recorded the profits of such gangs going up to $3,00,000 for every trip smuggling around 500 budgies or their eggs. And these are the monthly figures, to say the least.

The Ugly part of Budgie Trafficking

Where organizations like PETA are trying their best to spread awareness of animal cruelty, governments across the globe have failed animal lovers big time. Instead of trying to hush every case under the carpet, amplifying the harsh reality would better bring a change. Here are a few highlights of what it takes to traffick these little sensitive birds:

Budgies intended to traffick are hid in medicinal tubes, small packets, or PVC pipes. And what is missing in this transport process is comfort. They are ruthlessly stuffed one over the other with their mouths sealed to prevent them from making any noise. In a few of the raids, the authorities have even seized budgie chicks stuffed inside the inner pockets of the blazers of traffickers.

With tight checks owing to enhanced vigilance, traffickers have found another way to traffick the much-in-demand budgies: smuggle the eggs instead. Reports of seizing budgie eggs by various authorities are not uncommon to hear. They are easier to smuggle, according to many traffickers.

What can you do to stop promoting Budgie Trafficking?

Many of us have, at times, contributed to this unscrupulous industry. Where a few of us might have done it knowingly, thinking ‘how it matters?’; others fall in the category of those who, somehow, got duped by the industry. As for the former, the above topic unfolds the abuse to these sensitive birds, for the latter, here are a few days you can take yourself out of this inhumane process from hereon:

• Always adopt your budgie from a reputed and licensed breeder. This ensures that the bird is not wild-caught and abused.
• Always check for the band in the leg of the bird. It is a sign that the bird has been bred legally.

While you check the leg-band of the bird, don’t forget to ensure it’s seamless. The budgie trafficking business is so big that there are fakes too; fake bands slipped onto the legs of wild-caught budgies, fake breeders license, and fake documentation too. To ensure the authenticity of everything, always confirm the legal status of the breeder you have shortlisted.

Summing Up

We all want a loving companion and it is a bonus to have found one in cute little budgies. But many of us cross the line of being needy and choose to be outright selfish. For all of us shrugging off the source of budgie trade, here is an excerpt of the way your trafficked budgie would be like:

Chances are high that your trafficked budgie would have damaged feathers or ruptured skin due to getting hurt because of over-stuffing.

Trafficked budgies are mentally unhealthy for the way they have been treated. Almost all such birds are cranky, noisy, and unfriendly.

Being afraid of humans, such birds can hardly ever bond with their owners. This is the reason many such birds are either abused in-house too or left helplessly in the wild without solving their mental stress.

If we genuinely care for fellow living beings, we must be empathetic enough to feel what these little birds go through. All it needs to collapse an inhumane industry is a little mindfulness and a polite ‘no’.